


Friends of the A-B-Season's Greetings

by IvyOnTheHolodeck



Category: Les Misérables (2012), Les Misérables - All Media Types, Les Misérables - Victor Hugo
Genre: 12 Days of Christmas, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Don We Now Our Gay Apparel, F/F, F/M, Humor, M/M, Multi, Politically Charged, Texting, mild homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-25
Updated: 2016-12-25
Packaged: 2018-09-09 09:21:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8885440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IvyOnTheHolodeck/pseuds/IvyOnTheHolodeck
Summary: “Enjolras, why are you wearing my shirt?”Enjolras doesn’t look up at Cosette from his laptop, only glancing to the side periodically to verify facts in his Gov textbook. “None of my clothes had rainbows on them. I’m trying to make Javert uncomfortable.”“Dude, I literally came out as bisexual during Christmas dinner last year. Javert sprayed wine over half the tablecloth. I think he’s plenty uncomfortable already.”"Yes, but you've got a boyfriend now. I heard him this morning telling Dad he was glad you'd gotten over your 'phase.'" Enjolras clenches his fists.Cosette rolls her eyes, flopping down next to him on the sheepskin. "He does realize that bisexual means girls AND boys, right?"Enjolras breathes out in a huff, flipping his textbook shut. "I've asked Combeferre and Courf to send me some things from Jehan's collection. In the meantime-" He sets his jaw. "Rainbows."~Enjolras and Cosette Valjean visit their grandparents for Christmas. Grantaire and Eponine Thernardier next door are intrigued.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [tieflingcleric](https://archiveofourown.org/users/tieflingcleric/gifts).



> Inspired by my frustration at staying quiet about my very liberal politics while spending Christmas in the South. While my own family is very accepting and forward-thinking, it's painful to read coal-promoting bumper stickers, and the taxi driver started proselytizing about Trump, for heaven's sake. 
> 
> To everyone gritting their teeth through the holiday season, handling their relatives' conservative politics, and generally having a hard time with the "most wonderful time of the year," hang in there. I believe in you. If you want to rant, the comment section is open, and I'm listening.
> 
> To apolloinstarlight, the first person who believed in my writing and my best friend, I love you. Thank you for everything. :)

_**Twelve days until Christmas…** _

"He's probably a loser. You always go for losers."

"Shut up." Grantaire doesn't turn away from the window, where he's watching Hot New Neighbor Boy unload his luggage from the van next door. Neighbor Boy has visited for the holidays before, but god _damn_ he's grown up since Grantaire last noticed him. The grey light of mid-December somehow reflects off his blond hair like a fucking halo, and Grantaire is definitely going to hell for considering all the filthy things he wants to do to a guy who looks ninety percent angel. Ninety percent sourpuss angel, but still.

"R," Eponine whines. "You're blocking the view."

"I saw him first."

"I meant the sister, dumbass." She slouches against him, dropping her chin onto his shoulder and craning to see through the thin crack in the curtains. "The pretty boy is all yours."

Grantaire wraps an arm around his sister's waist, pretending he doesn't notice as she melts a little. The last guy who called Eponine on sentimentality ended up in the ER getting Red Vines pulled out of his sinuses, which, yeah, not the best way to catch Neighbor Boy's attention. "Pay you twenty bucks to lock us in a closet if the Myriels invite us over."

"Twenty-five to make it look like an accident."

"You're on."

Eponine slaps him a low-five, then pulls a flask out of her pocket, snuggled in a red-and-green sweater Gavroche crocheted last Christmas that's either cute or fucking heartbreaking. "Pick-me-up?"

"Can't, I gotta help the little monster with his algebra tonight." Neighbor Boy pulls his final suitcase out of the trunk, showing off his biceps gloriously. The artist in Grantaire wants to pose those arms to sketch their exact curve, while the rest of him is more invested in other kinds of research - what they taste like, for example.

Eponine snorts. "You keep staring at him like that, I'm going to start calling him a one-horse open sleigh." She ducks out of his grip before he can make the connection and saunters away humming "Jingle Bell Rock."

Neighbor Boy disappears into the garage, not once noticing the gay emo creeping at him through the window next door. Typical. "Merry fucking Christmas indeed," Grantaire mutters.

 

 

_**Eleven days until Christmas…** _

"Enjolras, why are you wearing my shirt?"

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"Because it's, like, three sizes too small?"

"I won't stretch it, don't worry."

"That still doesn't answer the question of _why_."

Enjolras doesn't look up from his laptop, only glancing to the side periodically to verify facts in his Gov textbook. "None of my clothes had rainbows on them."

"Enjolras." His laptop vanishes, leaving him blinking into his little sister's I'm-trying-to-be-patient face. "You are not a leprechaun. You do not have an inherent need for rainbows."

"I'm trying to make Javert uncomfortable."

"Dude, I literally came out as bisexual during Christmas dinner last year. Javert sprayed wine over half the tablecloth. I think he's plenty uncomfortable already."

"Yes, but you've got a boyfriend now. I heard him this morning telling Dad he was glad you'd gotten over your 'phase.'" Enjolras clenches his fists.

Cosette rolls her eyes, flopping down next to him on the sheepskin. "He does realize that bisexual means girls _and_ boys, right?"

Enjolras breathes out in a huff, flipping his textbook shut. "I've asked Combeferre and Courf to send me some things from Jehan's collection. In the meantime-" He sets his jaw. "Rainbows."

He yelps as she laughs and ruffles his hair. "Rainbows. You know you could have just used my eyeliner?"

"I considered that," he admits, "but I didn't want to perpetuate stereotypes. Plenty of gay and straight men use eyeliner, just like plenty of gay and straight men don't. Javert needs to understand that the LGBTQ community is made up of the kind of people he passes on the street every day, even if he can't identify them by sight."

"So, rainbows."

"Rainbows," he agrees. She chuckles, tucking her legs up and resting her head on his lap. He strokes her hair absently. "Rainbows and pride flags and unfettered discussions of our sexualities." Even if he's still a little confused about his. Okay, a lot confused, but he's pretty sure the straightest thing about him is his teeth, and that only after years of wearing a retainer. Demi, probably, with a primary attraction toward men.

"Don we now our gay apparel, then. Wait, _our_ sexualities?" Cosette squints up at him. "You're saying you've had the hots for someone other than the abstract concept of social justice?" So Enjolras may not have enlightened his sister regarding this matter. She snorts. "Damn, there goes Courf's and my plan to set you up with the Statue of Liberty."

"Please. If I believed in leagues, she'd be out of mine."

"You certainly seemed to believe in leagues when Theo was Snapchatting me."

"That bottom-feeder sent you photographs of his-" Enjolras gestures violently. "That wasn't a question of whether you were out of his league, that was a question of your safety."

"I still think you overreacted."

Enjolras retrieves his laptop from where Cosette propped it against the couch, balancing it on his knee. "The nurse assured us he'd make a full recovery from his accident."

"I'm still not sure where you found a lifesize Michelle Obama automaton to cause an accident."

"The abstract concept of social justice," he reminds her. "And Courf."

 

 

_**Ten days until Christmas…** _

The doorbell rings while Enjolras is in the study debating whether to choose _Guns, Germs, and Steel_ or _Heart of Darkness_ for his essay on imperialism. Ignoring the hubbub of overlapping voices in the front hall, he flips through the pages of the latter, considering whether Lamarque would prefer a factual or fictional approach - or, for that matter, modern or dated opinions. Better to get a feel for both. Dropping the books on the coffee table, he retrieves his notebook from the bookshelf and situates himself in the recliner.

Twenty pages into _Guns, Germs, and Steel_ , a cough breaks his reverie. A teenage boy stands in the doorway of the study, staring at him. Enjolras raises an eyebrow. "Can I help you?"

"You're reading that voluntarily?" There's a note of disbelief in his voice. "Isn't that meant to be, like, a doorstop?"

Enjolras grimaces. "I'm only reading it to find all the things wrong with it."

"Okaaaay." The kid leans against the doorframe, crossing his arms over his paint-spattered shirt. "Why?"

"So that I can explain how treating Africa's lag in development as inevitable harms the progression of global justice."

"Uh-huh. Because the world is totally going to listen to a teenager in a rainbow hoodie."

"Somebody has to do it," Enjolras says bitingly. Until that moment, he hadn't decided that his essay was going to be on this book, but now he's determined.

The boy rolls his eyes. "Good luck with that." Jerking a thumb over his shoulder, he half-turns back to the kitchen. "They sent me to get you for lunch…"

"Tell them I'm coming." Enjolras underlines the title of his notes, stacking the pencil and notebook on top of the tome on the recliner. He washes his hands in the hall bathroom and heads through the parlor into the dining room.

The kid he met before, a girl, and a preteen boy sit across the table from him and Cosette, while a pair of adults he vaguely recognizes as his grandfather's neighbors sit opposite his dad and Javert. "Enjolras," his grandfather says from the head of the table, "I'd like you to meet the Thernadiers. Grantaire and Eponine are just about your and Cosette's age, isn't that nice?" A muted murmur greets his words.

"Pleasure to meet you," Enjolras says with as much enthusiasm as he can muster. Apparently it's enough, because the adults immediately turn to discussions of the other families living in the neighborhood, which interests Enjolras not a whit. He peels a couple slices of swiss cheese off the plate of meat and cheese Cosette hands him and passes it along.

"Typical," the cynic - Grantaire - mutters.

"Excuse me?"

"What? Oh, nothing?" The guy rolls his eyes when Enjolras keeps staring at him. "It's just, of course you'd be too good to eat meat. Californian vegetarian social justice warrior. Typical."

"My decision not to eat meat has nothing to do with thinking myself too good for it," Enjolras counters hotly. "The meat industry is one of the most environmentally harmful organizations on the planet. It takes one thousand, seven hundred and ninety-nine gallons of water to produce a single pound of beef, so yes, given that I come from California, where we're in a drought, I don't eat meat. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Dude, chill." Grantaire holds up his hands, his mouth arching up on one side. "Have your one-man crusade against the evil cows."

"It's not the cows' fault, although the methane they produce-"

"So, Eponine," Cosette interrupts, leaning in front of Enjolras and kicking him under the table, "you said you're a junior? Are you guys on break yet?"

"Yep. School ended yesterday." The girl - Eponine, apparently - bites the head off a stalk of asparagus and chews it with attitude. "Good riddance."

"What are you planning to do over the holidays?"

"Stay at home. Deal with people getting drunk a lot." She snorts. "What are you planning to do?"

Enjolras is about to point out the neurological dangers of alcohol on an adolescent's brain, but Javert beats him to the punch. "Cosette will be video-chatting her boyfriend, who I'm told is a charming, upstanding young man. Isn't that right, Cosette?"

Cosette rolls her eyes, pulling a bunch of grapes out of the fruit bowl. "Yes, he is."

"You did well, getting over your phase from last year. I'm glad you don't feel the need to call attention to yourself anymore."

Enjolras's jaw clenches, but he knows his sister doesn't like other people fighting her battles. Cosette scowls. "My bisexuality is not a phase, Uncle. Right now I have a boyfriend. Maybe next year I'll have a girlfriend. It's just who I am."

"Who we are," Enjolras says, glowering at Javert over his cheese-and-lettuce sandwich.

Javert glares back. "Homosexuals are ungodly and unwelcome at my table."

Enjolras shoots to his feet, but before he can start into a righteous tirade, someone snorts. "Well, I guess that means I'm eating somewhere else." Eponine pushes back her chair and picks up her plate, ignoring Enjolras's surprise.

After a moment's pause, Grantaire follows her. "Same."

"The chairs in the study are nicer, anyway," Cosette agrees, rising too. "Enj, can you grab my milk? I've got your sandwich."

"With pleasure." Reveling in the fury written across Javert's face, Enjolras picks up his and Cosette's glasses and stalks out.

From the head of their parade, Eponine cranes her head and calls, "Gavroche, you can come too!"

"Awesome!" The little boy hops up from his seat to follow them - then reconsiders, doubles back, snags the bowl of potato chips, and scrambles to catch up. Javert's face glows a glorious red.

Cosette leads them to the study, where they sprawl on various pieces of furniture. "Thanks," she says to Eponine, smiling, kicking her legs up over the arm of a recliner.

"No prob," Eponine tells her. Gavroche is curled up against her side on the couch. "The bisexuals have to stick together, and your uncle's kind of a dick."

"And not even the good kind," Grantaire adds.

Enjolras glares at him. "There is a child present."

"Right, because that's the worst thing he's ever heard, even though Eponine she'll be dealing with drunk people over Christmas. Clearly we come from such a wholesome household."

"If there's a case of child endangerment, you should call the authorities," Enjolras tells him.

"Um, wow. You didn't - wow. You did just decide I need to reorganize my life, fifteen minutes after meeting me."

"I just meant-"

"So, Eponine," Cosette says loudly, "how are your classes going?"

Enjolras subsides reluctantly, trusting his little sister to navigate diplomacy better than he does. They end up with Gavroche on his phone and the other four playing 25 Words Or Less, in which Eponine and Grantaire are fantastic at cluing for each other, but Enjolras and Grantaire are not.

"Golden rule."

"Uh - don't mix nicotine and alcohol?" Enjolras shakes his head and gestures for Grantaire to keep going. "Bullion? Pirates? Jack Sparrow? State Warriors?"

This isn't working. Enjolras tries again. "Self-"

"Conscious? Hatred? Deprecating? Driving car?"

"Oh my god, seriously?"

"That's four more words," Cosette reminds him gleefully. "Aaaand your time is up."

"Respect!" Enjolras says, rounding on his so-called partner. "How hard is it for you to say respect?"

"Given that your clues were about as clear as a nerd's glasses after he steps out of a steamy room-"

"You don't just get respect from Grantaire. You have to win it," Eponine tells Enjolras from the other side of the board, Cosette draped over her legs. "Of course, your manly arms might earn you some automatically..."

"Shut up or I'll tell them about the time you broke a school bus," Grantaire says.

"Bitch."

"Jerk."

"You're Supernatural fans?" Cosette asks, her eyes shining. Eponine grins at her, and Enjolras has the sinking feeling that he's witnessing the start of a beautiful friendship.

They end up watching the Christmas episode on the projector downstairs.

 

 

_**Nine days until Christmas...** _

"I doubt he'd want me there," Grantaire objects.

"Oh, please," Eponine says, smacking him as she zips up her coat. "Cosette invited both of us, and if your eye sex had been any more obvious, I would have filmed you and sold it as porn. I mean, he looks like a porn star."

Grantaire can hardly disagree. But - "He's an asshole."

"So are you."

He can't argue with that either. In the end, he checks on Gavroche, who's immersed in his computer, before trailing behind his sister as she marches through the frozen grass to the house next door.

The Greek God lets them in, of course. Cosette must have talked to him, since he's stiffly polite as he leads them into the parlor where Cosette's lying on an Oriental rug. She waves an iPhone at them. "Enj, Marius is sending me snaps of boba! Tell him it's not fair."

Pretty Boy sighs, but repeats, "That's not fair to my sister, Marius," as Cosette points the phone in his direction. Eponine, behind him, makes a face at the camera, and Grantaire tries not to laugh.

"Perfect!" Cosette grins, typing what's probably a caption. "Saving to my memories."

"Dude-" Eponine objects, going over to lie down next to her, maybe a little closer than necessary. Grantaire hopes his sister knows what she's doing.

"So, you're an artist then."

R leans against the doorframe, giving Mister Golden Rule a thoroughly unimpressed stare. "You don't have to pretend to be interested in me for Eponine's sake. She does her own thing."

"I'm not pretending," the guy argues, looking angry enough that Grantaire decides complying to mandatory small talk is the path of least resistance. "So you're an artist."

"Yep. I'm a photographer - I create galleries of the marginalized and impoverished to draw attention to the important issues of today."

My Hair Is Ensured For 2.9 Million blinks at him. "Really?"

Grantaire groans, thunking his head back against the wall. "Fuck, dude, no. I was covered in paint yesterday. I paint."

"Oh." Sapphires For Optical Sensors turns the same color as the stockings on the mantlepiece. "That makes sense, I guess."

"Don't strain yourself, sweetheart."

"Enjolras, Marius is eating boba with a spork," Cosette complains from the carpet. "It's just wrong. This is cruel and unusual punishment for going away for Christmas!"

"What's boba?" Grantaire asks.

Cosette's mouth drops open. "Oh my god-"

"Boba is another name for the tapioca pearls we put in milk tea," Sunshine says hastily. "It's a popular drink in the Bay Area-"

"Oh my god-"

"And Cosette's a little obsessed, by which I mean a lot obsessed, by which I mean she's now known as the Boba Queen at our school because her longest streak lasted nine months, and the cafe starts making her tea before school lets out even though she doesn't order ahead of time-"

"Oh my god-"

"And so I recommend you don't mention it unless you want to learn the complete history of-"

"Brother dear, shut your face. Grantaire, sit down. I'm giving you an overview of the most glorious invention known to man."

"Uh." Grantaire dutifully joins her on the floor when Eponine glares at him. Cosette's phone has a new shot of a clear cup with purple liquid and dark spots at the bottom. "I'm surprised your brother doesn't object to the plastic."

"Oh, Marius is in San Francisco with his grandfather right now. Enj introduced sustainable packaging to the tea house next to our school."

"Of course he did." Grantaire shuts up after that and lets Cosette tell him about the magnificence of tapioca. Clinique Model brings in his brick of a book and reads it like his gaze can set the words on fire, which, honestly, Grantaire wouldn't be surprised. The entire tableau ends up looking almost familial, almost.

 

 

_**Eight days until Christmas...** _

"Enj Enj Enj Enj Enj _Enj!_ "

"Ungh," Enj says, rolling over and covering his head with a pillow. "Wha timezzit."

"Eight thirty, lazy! Not my fault you stayed up until three planning the inaugural walkout."

"Ferre didn't get back from the sustainability dinner until eleven," Enjolras mumbles into the bedsheet. He and Courf started assigning poster design and social media recruiting to club members around midnight - nine for Courf, thanks to the time difference - but by the time Combeferre arrived, they'd decided to expand to all the high schools in their district, contact KRON 4 News to request coverage, and build an effigy of the president-elect to burn in front of City Hall. Joining the Skype call, Ferre had taken one look at their outline, shook his head, and started cutting out ideas until their plan was actionable. Courf changed their groupchat's name to Hot Air Balloon, and Ferre's nickname on the chat to Sandbags. Combeferre took that as the compliment it was.

"Enj, you gotta get up," Cosette insists. The mattress bounces as she jumps on it, because Enjolras's sister is five years old. "It _snowed_."

Enjolras looks up at her blearily. "How deep?"

"Two, three inches. C'mon, it's gonna melt if we don't go out there right now!" She manages to drag him out of bed and stuff him into a coat and snow pants, flinging open the front door onto a world of white (which, based on the outcome of the last election, is a fair description of America.) A pair of bundled teenagers are waiting for them on the back lawn. Cosette squeals with delight. "Eponine!"

"You California kids need help building a proper snowman," Eponine says, grinning over her scarf. "Let's get packing."

The basic shape of the snowman is easy enough to construct, Eponine and Cosette working on the base together while Grantaire makes the middle section and Enjolras the top. Enjolras's fingers soon start aching with cold, but he doesn't want to put on gloves and lose his dexterity.

"You'll lose your dexterity anyway if your hands freeze," Grantaire points out.

Enjolras thinks out loud too much - the first time he did in ninth grade, his Geometry teacher gave him detention for disrespect and - Enjolras swears to god - _deviance_. He'd brought the narrow-mindedness of the latter half of that accusation to the principal and then the superintendent, which foreshadowed the rest of his high school career.

"Or you could ignore me, that works too. Too hot to get frostbite, Apollo?"

"Screw you."

"Feel free."

Enjolras throws a snowball at him.

"Boys!" Cosette calls, her voice stern. "Build now, flirt later."

"Yes, Cosette," they chorus, then glare at each other and get back to work.

Enjolras and Eponine lift the upper sections of the snowman onto the base together, Cosette directing and Grantaire standing back to "enjoy the view," whatever that means. They all survey their creation.

"It's certainly...minimalistic," Enjolras says doubtfully.

Eponine snorts. "Dude, it's not done yet. Grantaire, you got the sticks?"

"Roger that." He goes to rummage in the snow under one of the trees.

"Cosette, can you find a carrot?" Cosette gives her a thumbs-up and runs back toward the house.

"What about me?"

"You sit still and look pretty. R - why do you have five sticks?"

"Obviously," Grantaire says, dropping the branches at their feet, "our guests need the full snow experience, which means deranged mutant killer monster snow goons. This one can have a couple arms coming out of its head."

Eponine purses her lips but nods, looking at Enjolras. Enjolras grins. "I'll get some more carrots."

As he crunches through the snow toward his grandparents' house, he hears Grantaire say behind him, sounding slightly stunned, "Did he just...roll with it?" Enjolras rolls his eyes. As if he wouldn't get the reference - Bill Watterson is classic in the Golden State, too.

He and Cosette return with three carrots, a cucumber, and the agreement that "screw gender norms, we're building a snow-woman." Eponine points out that no, they're building a snow-queen, so Enjolras weaves a crown out of wet leaves while Grantaire carves out the queen's mouth and eyes. When he uses icicles for her teeth, Eponine realizes that the Snow Queen (Felicia the Terrible, Cosette decides) is cannibalistic, so the heads of smaller snowmen gather around her base, twig x's for eyes.

"You know what this scene really needs?" Enjolras says, stepping back and squinting at the frigid tyrant. "Red food coloring."

Everyone's hands are stained from the bloody handprints covering Felicia by the time they pile back into the house, laughing, and Enjolras doesn't even mind when Grantaire says he puts the _hot_ in hot chocolate.

"So, you look half-dead," the guy says, the girls having ensconced themselves in the parlor. "Up late worrying about the disenfranchised?"

It's probably an attack, but with a mug of cocoa in his hands, Enjolras is inclined to feel generous. "Organizing a walk-out on Inauguration Day. We're sending a message to the new executive assholes - we, the up-and-coming generation, will not roll over and accept Islamophobia, homophobia, and misogyny. We will fight every step of the way."

"A couple hundred kids are ditching school to tell Washington they don't like the government," Grantaire summarizes. "A couple hundred California kids. That sounds...productive."

"Do you think we can't do it?" Enjolras demands. People everywhere are the same, trying to tell him that no, he can't start an LGBT support center at the community college, no, he can't outlaw racist slurs at school, no, he can't institute composting programs at all the elementary schools, no, he can't bring multiple male dates to prom. Well, screw you, people, yes he can.

"Nah, dude, I'm sure you can, but nobody's going to be surprised that teenagers are unhappy. Especially California teenagers, especially after the election. It won't matter."

"We need to take a stand!"

Grantaire shrugs. "Whatever. You do you." He rebuffs all Enjolras's attempts to continue the conversation, instead focusing on building a house of cards from the stack Javert left out, cussing cheerfully ever time it falls down.

 

 

_**Seven days until Christmas...** _

**Cosette Valjean and Eponine Thernardier are now friends!**

Cosette: hi!!

**Cosette set Cosette's nickname to Cos i said so.**

Eponine: hi :)

**Eponine set Eponine's nickname to Pwnine.**

Cos i said so: soooo do you want to come over today?

Pwnine: depends

Pwnine: will I have to watch our brothers fail to deal with their sexual tension

Cos i said so: lol

Cos i said so: theyre so blind

Cos i said so: like, just kiss already??? please??? this is not rocket science???

Cos i said so: i mean my brother has never dated anyone so

Pwnine: holy fundraiser really

Pwnine: *fundraiser

Pwnine: *FUNDRAISER

Pwnine: GODDAMMIT GAVROCHE

Cos i said so: LOL

Cos i said so: he never mentioned it but yeah no never dated so

Pwnine: do u have a closet we can lock them in

Pwnine: R will pay me & we can split the $$

Cos i said so: omg

Cos i said so: how do we get them in the closet

Cos i said so: could we tell Enj there was a human rights violation in the closet

Pwnine: yes

Pwnine: but how do we get R in the closet too

Cos i said so: Enj will be in the closet first

Pwnine: u smart grl

Cos i said so: :)

Pwnine: lol what if we accidentally locked ourselves in the closet

Pwnine: not like on purpose

Pwnine: but just

Pwnine: nvm

Cos i said so: ;)

Cos i said so: boyfriend tho

Pwnine: yeah ik

Pwnine: invite him too? hes cute

Cos i said so: ;) ;) ;) ikr

**[Three hours later...]**

"Cosette, let us out!"

"Cosette, let us out right now!"

"Cosette, I know you can hear me. Let us _out!_ "

"Have you made out yet?"

" _Cosette this is not funny!_ "

"It is, though."

" _I will tell Father if you do not let us out immediately!_ "

"Okay, dude, chill."

" _The next person to tell me to chill will be sent to Africa with the tools necessary for constructing wells and will not be allowed back into my vicinity until they have brought water to at least five hundred people!_ Actually, Ferre mentioned a well-building NGO that's visiting our school next month."

"Oh my god, bro. You happy now?"

"Yes, thank you. Never do that again. And what does Eponine mean, she's not getting the money?"

 

 

_**Six days until Christmas…** _

"Ohmi _god_!"

Grantaire has a bad feeling about this. Cosette only squeals that loudly when greeting his sister or discussing boba, but Eponine lies beside him in the study and there's no milk tea in sight. A moment ago, Cosette got up to answer the doorbell, and whatever she found there was apparently thrilling.

Her abrupt silence does not reassure him.

Grantaire continues sketching Apollo curled up with a laptop, the guy too distracted with his walk-out to notice R staring at him, but he keeps an uneasy eye on the door. A minute or two later, Cosette appears, tugging a teenage boy behind her. "Enjolras, look who just got here!"

The blonde god glances up absently, then does a double-take. "Oh, my goodness. I didn't expect to see you here."

"My grandfather was glad for the opportunity to get back in my good books, so he paid for the ticket. Your dad said to surprise Cosette," the boy admits. He's got a disarmingly sweet smile, but he also looks about three years old, and - Grantaire checks - yep, exactly Eponine's type, based on her wide-eyed stare.

"Ep, R," Cosette says proudly, "this is Marius Pontmercy, my boyfriend." They smile at each other with enough sugar to keep a Hershey's factory running for months. R's heart sinks. Poor Eponine. "Marius, these are our new friends, Grantaire and Eponine Thernardier."

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Marius says, the greeting sounding like the most genuine statement in the history of humanity. Grantaire nods cordially at him but notices that he seems to be looking mostly at Eponine.

Cosette beams.

"Uh, Grantaire," Enjolras says, snapping his laptop shut. "Can I show you something? In the kitchen?"

"What's in the kitchen?" Grantaire asks blankly.

Enjolras glares at him. "The thing I need to show you."

"Okaaay." Grantaire levers himself off the couch and follows Enjolras's stiff stride down the hall. Marius and Cosette join Eponine on the couch in the spot he vacated.

"We have a problem," Enjolras whispers as soon as they pass the kitchen table.

Grantaire slouches against the island's marble top. "Fuck, what did I do this time?" He can't think of anything he's deliberately pulled to irritate Apollo in the last day or so, and the closet disaster was yesterday - they'd just argued more about the dude's well-meant but high-key useless activism - so the offending act must have been an accident, and wow, that's almost worse. Unless Enjolras figures that now Marius has arrived, they've got their foursome ( _wrong word, brain!_ ) and Grantaire is superfluous? Which, yeah, he could understand that. Eponine wouldn't like it, so he'll have to pretend to be staying away for his own reasons, since she's actually happy around Cosette like he hasn't seen her be in ages.

"What? No, R, you're not the problem."

Oh. Or he might not be the problem. That's a first. "What's wrong?"

Enjolras glances over his shoulder, then hisses, "Your sister is staring at my sister's boyfriend."

Grantaire blinks. "Yeah, and your sister's boyfriend is staring at my sister."

"Exactly," Enjolras agrees, angrily folding his arms like an angsty pretzel. "So we have a problem."

Personally, Grantaire thinks Cosette can take care of herself. He snags one of the See's Candies in a box on the counter and chews, considering. Even more importantly - "Should we interfere? I mean, it's not our relationship." Because we don't have one, he shouldn't have said that, _fuck_ -

But Enjolras just shakes his head. "She's my sister. I've got to look out for her."

"Since when do you ask me for help?" Grantaire asks, stalling.

"Since you gave really good advice on how to reorganize our walkout." Grantaire stares at him. "What we discussed yesterday. In the closet," Enjolras says, looking frustrated at R's thickness. "I've talked to Ferre and Courf. We're going to make the walkout a human rights walk for the ACLU and get people to sponsor us."

That's...surprising. R read the ACLU's letter to the commander-in-cheeto after the election, and they seem legit. Of course, he'd read the letter while chilling in the principal's office after leaving a flounder on the librarian's windshield, but hey, everyone deals with trauma differently. "So you got a plan?"

And that's the story of how Grantaire got to challenge Cosette and Marius to a game of Just Dance 4 in the basement while Enjolras ~~browbeat~~ convinced Eponine to check out the Valjeans' grandparents' barometer, since she was "evidently fascinated by meteorology." (She'd mentioned that she liked the rain. Once.) Cosette kicks ass at the rickrolling song, but Marius destroys her at "Umbrella." He's so good, in fact, that R suspects he's been practicing.

He notices Cosette texting while he and Marius are facing off, but he doesn't pay much attention, since if he's going to suffer the indignity of playing Just Dance to Selena Gomez music, there's no way in hell he's going to _lose_.

~

Cos i said so: so our bothers are trying to separate us

Cos i said so: *brothers

Cos i said so: still accurate tho

Pwnine: so THATS what theyre doing

Pwnine: I was so confused ngl

Pwnine: Enj just about lost his shit when I asked if we could show your bf the barometer

Cos i said so: ohhhhhhh

Cos i said so: LOL

Cos i said so: enjy is so cute when hes being protective

Cos i said so: hes afraid youll steal my bf

Pwnine: OH LOL

Pwnine: can I have him tho

Pwnine: hes soooooooo cute

Cos i said so: ikr?????????

Pwnine: we need to stop them tho

Pwnine: what will make them stop

Cos i said so: i could make out w Marius until R gets uncomfortable

Cos i said so: u still there???

Pwnine: sure

Pwnine: yeah im here

Cos i said so: ;)

Cos i said so: brb

Cos i said so: [image attached]

Pwnine: why the fuck would you send that

Pwnine: wife i dont need photos of u & pretty boy kissing

Pwnine: *WTF

Pwnine: I BLAME AUTOCORRECT

Cos i said so: ;))))))))

Cos i said so: come join us?

Pwnine: very funny

Cos i said so: ur loss

Cos i said so: R says we're coming upstairs now

~

They all go to lunch together, and it's surprisingly not awkward. Enjolras seems to relax when he sees that Eponine flirts with Cosette at least as often as she does with Marius.

Marius is a good guy, not Apollo-righteous-fury good, but just nice-kid-good. He and Cosette feed each other wantons out of their soup, handling their chopsticks like pros - and given they're from the Bay Area, they probably are. Then Cosette offers to feed Eponine too, and Ep tells her where she can shove her chopstick, and Cosette says that Enjolras clearly already did, and everything becomes normal.

On the way home, the incident with the donkey did not happen and cannot be pinned on their group.

~

Cos i said so: imma add Marius to our chat

Pwnine: WAT

Pwnine: THIS CHAT

Pwnine: NO COSETTE WEVE BEEN FLIRTING ON THIS CHAT

**Cosette added Marius Pontmercy to the chat!**

Cos i said so: marius!!!!!!

Pwnine: oh hi marius

Pwnine: fancy meeting u here

Pwnine: *glares at cosette*

Cos i said so: *smiles angelically*

Cos i said so: i am a good child

Marius: hi Eponine!

Pwnine: did. you. just. capitalize. on. a. chat.

Marius: Did You Just Punctuate A Chat

Pwnine: touche

**Cosette set Marius's nickname to "Marry me"!**

Pwnine: dude

Pwnine: y u do dis

Marry me: <3

Cos i said so: he marries me, u live with us, ppl assume that one of us is married to him and he says he has a sister

Cos i said so: every1 is confused bc they dont know who the sister is

Pwnine: i am down 4 dis

Marry me: me too

Marry me: anyway

Marry me: so the boys

Marry me: r we getting them 2gthr or what

Cos i said so: !!!!!!!!!!

Cos i said so: THIS IS WHY I LUV U

Marry me: wait really

Cos i said so: crap

Cos i said so: but yes really

Cos i said so: so

Cos i said so: yeah

Marry me: oh wow me too

Marry me: …

Marry me: that came out wrong

Marry me: i love you too

Marry me: is what i meant

Marry me: before

Marry me: when i said that

Marry me: u know

Pwnine: UGH

Pwnine: DO YOU HAVE TO DO THIS ON THE GC

Pwnine: JESUS FUCK

Pwnine: GET A ROOM

Pwnine: YOU HAVE AN ENTIRE FUCKING MANSION FIND A FUCKING ROOM

Pwnine: GOD

Cos i said so: …

Cos i said so: well

Cos i said so: that is not how i expected my first declaration of love to go

Pwnine: excuse me imma go throw up

Marry me: <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

Marry me: …that was for cosette, not u throwing up

Marry me: but feel better ep!!!

 

 

_**Five days until Christmas...** _

Wednesday is taken up rewriting Christmas carols.

_On the fifth day of Christmas, a Valjean showed to me_

_Fe-mi-ni-sm,_

_Four misogynists,_

_Three pride flags,_

_Two demagogues,_

_and American income disparity._

Grantaire blames Eponine. Eponine blames Marius for setting the stage by showing off Cosette's tumblr account featuring "The (Time) Lord of the Dance." Cosette claims it's Enjolras's fault, since he, Ferre, and Courf hacked the DJ's computer at prom last year to play 80s music and "Take Me to Church," along with a few of their own social justice compilations, and really she's just following his example.

Enjolras walks around the house humming "and American income disparity" all day and doesn't even complain when R destroys him at cribbage.

 

 

_**Four days until Christmas...** _

"Where are you applying?" R blinks, looking up from the chocolate chips he's measuring out. "To college," Enjolras clarifies from the stove, stirring the pot.

Oh. "I'm not. You?" He's got just over a cup, but hell, who doesn't want extra chocolate chips? R dumps them into the bowl, pretending that baking with Apollo isn't so domestic that it hurts. He measures out the vanilla, sniffing the bottle with pleasure, before realizing that Enjolras hasn't replied, that Enjolras is in fact staring at him. "What?"

"You're not applying to college."

Grantaire squints at him. "Uh, yeah, I just said that. I'll bet you are, though." He crosses to the fridge to pull out the milk.

"Harvard, Stanford, a couple UCs, and Dartmouth." Typical. Given what Cosette's said about his GPA, he'll be accepted to all of them, too. Apollo will fit right in among the Grecian architecture. Maybe some lucky artist'll be able to convince him to pose - or more likely, will get him to sit in one place for a few hours by asking him about social justice. Cosette managed to sneak reindeer antlers onto him yesterday when Eponine inquired about the Black Lives Matter movement, and yeah, it's terrifying that the girls are teaming up. "Why aren't you?"

Grantaire snorts. "Dude, you've known me for a week now. Do I seem like college material?" The sugar is right where Mr. Myriel told him, behind the cereal in the cupboard.

"Yes."

"Haven't been paying much attention, then." R imagines spending tens of thousands of someone's dollars to prove what high school has already taught him: he's not smart enough to party with the elite unless he's bringing the beer. Yeah, fuck no. Maybe he can score another summer job at the Musain - Mabeuf said his work in the nursery was damn good, and everyone'd really liked the mural he'd done of the local flowers. With any luck, he'll get hired full time. He could live with that.  

Enjolras hasn't stopped stirring the molten Rice Krispie treats (and hearing him say "Krispie" with a straight face is one of life's great pleasures), but his spoon clangs against the metal louder than before. "R, the great beauty of college is that people of all backgrounds can come together and learn to understand each other. Even if the SAT system is corrupt, higher education is still the best way to elevate yourself, to make a difference."

Isn't Enjolras supposed to be all about avoiding those pretty little fantasies and facing the truth? "Not my style." Like he could leave his sister and brother alone with their parents. Gavroche would have drowned in the pool when he was five if Grantaire hadn't been there to watch him; Eponine would have electrocuted herself trying to curl her hair in the bathtub. Their parents don't care enough to keep them fed or clothed. R's been in charge of stocking the pantry and the closets since he was seven. Their parents let him, especially since his Kroger card gets them gasoline credit.

"What, do you think your parents wouldn't pay for it?" R nods exaggeratedly, but Enjolras doesn't seem mollified. "There are scholarships available, or you could go to a community college. Literally no reason exists for you not to apply to college other than sheer laziness."

R grits his teeth. Apollo doesn't know what the fuck he's talking about, even if some part of him agrees that yeah, maybe he could have spent junior year studying instead of switching between protecting Gavroche from that motherfucker Parnasse and getting shitfaced. Maybe he could be working now for Eponine's college fund, since that girl has a head on her shoulders. Maybe he's being selfish. "Maybe you should get the fuck out of my face."

"You've got a good brain, R," Enjolras says sternly, "and it's irresponsible for you to let it go to waste."

As if the rest of his life wasn't a waste already, a pathetic assemblage of drunken parties and mediocre paint splatters and cleaning up his parents' messes. "Who put you in charge of deciding how I run my life?"

"Given that you're apparently incapable of making smart decisions - R - R, come back here, I'm not finished!"

"Fuck off." He throws his spatula on the table, half-finished dough smearing the wood surface, and storms out, the screen door clattering shut behind him. He shouldn't have been playing house anyway.

 

 

_**Three days until Christmas…** _

"R is drunk," Eponine announces.

Enjolras blinks at the girl blocking his doorway, her Pink Floyd shirt contrasting with the china knickknacks of the Myriels' parlor. His stomach drops. "He was fine yesterday." Until Enjolras started yelling at him, at least.

"He was fine _yesterday_ ," Eponine says, staring at him like he's an idiot. "Now he's drunk. Go fix it."

"How?" Given that Enjolras has known R for a week, whereas Eponine has probably dealt with this kind of thing before, he doesn't understand why she's coming to him.

"Cause you broke it, jackass. Go fix it. Now."

Enjolras is practically dressed in pajamas - his button-down shirt isn't ironed - but he heads downstairs walks across the manicured lawn to the neighboring house. The front door is open, so he lets himself in. "Hello?"

"Fuck the fuck off, fuckin' fucker."

Enjolras considers this. "Same."

He finds Grantaire flopped across a black leather couch, the cushions ripped up. He can't help noticing the litter covering the floor and the moldy remnants of what might have been a burrito on a table. Grantaire glares at him with bloodshot eyes, gaze slightly unfocused. "Told you to go 'way."

"I heard, but didn't listen." Enjolras scowls at their surroundings. Stains on the walls might be more than water damage. "This is where you live?" A worse thought occurs to him. "This is where Gavroche has been all week?"

"Nah, he's at th' library," Grantaire reassures him, his gestures too wide. "Lots of computers for him. 'S good."

"Why are you drunk, Grantaire?"

Grantaire pouts. "Don' wanna tell you."

"Grantaire."

The guy rolls away, throwing an arm across his face. "You're better without me anyway."

Enjolras sits down next to him, putting a hand on his elbow. "We miss you."

Grantaire snorts. "Bet you didn't know I was gone 'til Ep told you."

"That's not true," Enjolras lies. He'd figured R just didn't want to see him and was hanging out with the girls and Marius instead, which had caused his gut to clench oddly.

"Whatever." Grantaire won't look at him. "Why are you even here."

"Eponine said you were drunk because of me, so I came to fix whatever I did."

This is evidently not comforting, since Grantaire groans even louder. "'M going to kill her, oh my god, no. You don't have to feel guilty, fuck off."

Enjolras is no stranger to drinking - he's friends with Courfeyrac, for heaven's sake - but usually his group only gets a little buzzed, just enough so that Ferre doesn't object to Courf holding his hand and Jehan recites Donne while Bossuet plays the spoons. R doesn't seem like he's in a "Death Be Not Proud" place, though. "What can I do to help?"

"I tol' you - fuck off." Grantaire shoves at him but overcompensates and falls off the couch.

Enjolras shakes his head. "Not happening. Let's get you to the bathroom."

"I don't want your fucking help! Go stick yourself in someone else's business." The end of the sentence is worryingly slurred.

"I wouldn't leave any friend alone like this."

"This isn't about you, not everything's 'bout you, and I'm not your motherfucking friend!"

Ouch. Well.

Enjolras considers the boy - man? - sprawled out on the floor. "I'm...sorry to hear that." He squares his shoulders. "But I'm not leaving you."

Grantaire groans. "Do whatever the fuck you like. I'm just gonna-" He retches.

Enjolras ends up helping him wash himself off and then scrub the floor. Grantaire doesn't look at him the whole time.

~

Cos i said so: Ep

Cos i said so: Ep

Cos i said so: Ep

Cos i said so: Ep

Cos i said so: Ep

Pwnine: WHAT

Cos i said so: EXACTLY

Cos i said so: WHAT THE FRICK HAPPENED TO MY BROTHER

Cos i said so: IDK BUT HES STILL NOT TALKING

Cos i said so: JAVERT MENTIONED CAPITALISM AT DINNER YESTERDAY AND HE JUST???? SAT THERE????

Cos i said so: I AM CONCERNED

Marry me: R hasnt been over all day

Marry me: do u think they finally

Marry me: u kno

Cos i said so: kissed?

Marry me: yeah :)

Pwnine: dude if anything they screwed

Pwnine: but i dont think that's what happened

Cos i said so: ???

Pwnine: R was drink when i left the house

Pwnine: *drunk

Pwnine: when i came back he was asleep

Pwnine: and btw your brother is a creep Cos bc he was sitting in a chair watching him???

Cos i said so: wat

Marry me: is that normal?

Pwnine: idk

Pwnine: i mean drunk is pretty normal for R but

Pwnine: idk

Cos i said so: doesnt that hurt you tho when he gets drunk?

Cos i said so: Ep?

Pwnine: eh

Pwnine: i mean he does enough for me & Gav so i cant blame him

Marry me: We're always here for you, Ep, if you want someone (or someones) to talk to.

Pwnine: what did i say about capitalizing

Pwnine: but thank you

Pwnine: UPDATE I JUST WENT DOWNSTAIRS AND ENJOLRAS HAS R'S HEAD IN HIS LAP AND IS STROKING HIS HAIR

Cos i said so: IM SCREAMING

Pwnine: UPDATE IM STANDING BEHIND THE DOOR EAVESDROPPING AND ENJ IS SINGING LULLABIES?????!!!!????

Pwnine: UPDATE R JUST SAID SOMETHING SO HES AWAKE IDEK WHAT HAPPENED BUT WOW

Marry me: !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

 

**_Two days until Christmas..._ **

"Who the hell put up mistletoe?" Enjolras demands, staring in horror at the green leaves tied above the kitchen. He's not awake enough to deal with this.

"Guilty," Cosette sings. "Enj, do you want some of this? It's-" She squints at the bottle. "Boiled Custard drink."

Enjolras makes a face. "What is that, bootleg eggnog?" He wrinkles his nose. "Bootleggnog?" Cosette laughs, pulling down two glasses from the cupboard. "Where's Marius?"

"Still asleep, the bum," Cosette says fondly. "I can't believe Dad made me and him sleep in separate rooms." Enjolras chokes on his custard drink, and she glares at him. "Just so we could talk to each other, it's not like we're going to do anything-"

"Who's not going to do anything?" Marius asks from the doorway.

"Us, sweetie!" Cosette runs across the room and kisses him thoroughly, ignoring Enjolras's protests. "Enjolras was just doubting your gentlemanly manners," she adds, grinning.

Marius smiles down at her with such adoration that Enjolras is either going to start throwing rose petals or chairs. "You do inspire chivalry in people."

The doorbell rings, and Enjolras jumps at the opportunity to exit the Disney princess moment. He grimaces at his brain's own categorization - given the repeated sexist overtones of many of Disney's movies, he'd prefer that analogy if Marius were the princess.

The image of Marius in a ballgown is one he didn't need.

Eponine and Grantaire are on the front porch, and after a long moment of awkward eye contact with R, Enjolras realizes they're waiting for him to let them in. Dear god - he wrenches the handle and flings the door open a little too enthusiastically, having to catch it before it crashes into the wall. "Hi guys, please, feel free to enter our humble, I mean, come as you, or, well-" Jesus christ, what is wrong with him? Was it something in the drink? Enjolras takes a deep breath, staring intensely at his shoes. "Please come in."

Eponine snickers as she passes him. When he looks up, R is still there, watching him. Enjolras says the first thing that comes into his head: "I still think you should go to college."

After a pause, R laughs, and the tension breaks. "You don't give up, do you." He rolls his eyes, but he doesn't look like he's on the path back to getting drunk, which is excellent. Giddiness blooms in Enjolras's chest, probably relief that R isn't mad at him anymore.

"I looked it up," Enjolras admits. "The local university's deadline is the fifteenth of February."

"I'll think about it," R promises.

They smile at each other for a second, and then Enjolras realizes he can see R's breath in the morning air. "Do you want to come in?"

They're greeted by wolf-whistles at the kitchen door. Smirking, Cosette points at the mistletoe hanging over their heads.

Enjolras's throat goes dry.

The corner of his mouth ticking up, R considers him with an eyebrow sardonically raised, and then presses his lips to Enjolras's knuckles. Enjolras swallows. He hadn't even noticed his hand being picked up.

Eponine and Marius cheer, while Cosette gives R a high-five. Enjolras doesn't move, his brow furrowing. His fingers still feel warm, but now his insides are warm too. Is this a typical reaction?

"C'mon, Enj, we're going bike riding!" Cosette calls. Somehow she and the others have moved into the main hall without him noticing. "Or should I say, _bi_ -cycle riding."

"We should put on more layers," Eponine retorts, "since the air is _bi_ -tingly cold."

" _Let's be in_ -telligent, here, people." Grantaire drops the 't' as Cosette pulls helmets out of the closet and passes them around. "We live in a _gay_ -ted community, we might not be able to get _straight_ to the main road."

"I'm _gay_ -me," Enjolras decides. "We'll just _trans_ -fer to a different path if the first one doesn't work out."

Marius furrows his brow. "Why are you guys giggling?"

Cosette pats his cheek. "Bless." She links arms with him and Eponine, pulling them stumbling down to the garage.

They end up picnicking by the lake and watching herons wade in the shallows. R has a lot of fascinating observations about the view from an artist's perspective. Enjolras's sister needs to stop wiggling her eyebrows at him.

 

 

_**One day until Christmas...** _

Pwnine: [image attached]

Pwnine: I AM DYING OF LAUGHTER

Cos i said so: OH MY GOD

Cos i said so: YOU ACTUALLY GOT THE PIC I DIE,,,,,,

Cos i said so: ASSIGNING THIS TO WALLPAPER

Marry me: XD

Marry me: whose bright idea was it to show enjolras karaoke

Marry me: i could kiss you

Cos i said so: lol im assuming u think it was me but it was ep

Marry me: oh

Marry me: oops

Cos i said so: go ahead tho i cant blame u

Cos i said so: if ep is down

Pwnine: ...

Marry me: ...

Pwnine: what.

Marry me: Cosette?

Cos i said so: or i could just do it myself

Cos i said so: ep r u still downstairs?

Pwnine: uh

Pwnine: u has bf

Marry me: yeah I'm still here

Cos i said so: ik im bringing him too

Cos i said so: marius where u at

Marry me: hiding in the laundry room

Cos i said so: ...

Cos i said so: why?

Marry me: bc i am confused

Marry me: Why are you talking about me & u kissing ep if we're together?

Marry me: I love you, Cosette. I wouldn't cheat on you.

Marry me: But I understand if you love Eponine better. She's an amazing, beautiful, charming woman.

Pwnine: i was going to comment on the capitalization but

Cos i said so: ohmygod guys ur so thick sometimes

Cos i said so: I like Eponine. Eponine likes me. Marius likes Eponine. Eponine likes Marius. Marius and I like each other.

Cos i said so: THIS ISNT ROCKET SCIENCE GUYS

Marry me: ...ep?

Pwnine: ...

Pwnine: i mean she's not wrong

Cos i said so: ill be right down

Cos i said so: actually it would be a sin to distract R&E from their karaoke

Cos i said so: what r they singing now

Pwnine: all i want for christmas is you

Cos i said so: accurate

Cos i said so: yall come meet me in the study

Cos i said so: the study has wide couches

Pwnine: gurl u cant say y'all u ain't from around here

Cos i said so: gurl ill say y'all if i want to

Cos i said so: now come make out w/ me & my bf

Pwnine: coming

Cos i said so: what was that crashing noise?

Pwnine: marius knocked over a lamp running out of the laundry room

Cos i said so: ;P

 

 

_**Christmas day.** _

"Um, dude. What are you doing?"

Enjolras looks up from his book. "Reading."

"In the dark?"

Crap, he'd known he'd forgotten something. So maybe he's not as good at faking casualness as he'd hoped. "I have good eyes."

"Uh-huh." R blinks at him, silhouetted against the light of the staircase, his curls highlighted by their glow.

Maybe it's a good thing that R can't see his face, Enjolras realizes, since he's definitely blushing. The conclusion he came to yesterday seems more and more credible. "So...I take it you came down here to watch a movie."

Grantaire glances at the big screen, making Enjolras's heart seize, but (thank god) he looks no higher. "No, actually, I - I thought I should tell you. Our sisters are making out in the parlor."

"What?" Enjolras stares at Grantaire, then whips his head around to the couch behind him, where he knows Marius is texting, hidden from R's view.

The boy looks surprisingly unfazed. "Oh, really? I'll go join them." He tucks away his phone and stands up. "See ya, guys." Thuds mark his climbing of the stairs, and twin exclamations of pleasure denote his arrival in the parlor.

Enjolras and Grantaire remain frozen in silence for a good minute. Then Grantaire snorts. "So. That happened."

Enjolras shakes his head, getting up too and dropping _Guns, Germs, and Steel_ at his feet. "My sister always was good at getting what she wanted." And if he could channel some of that skill right now, that would be great. He takes a deep breath. "Grantaire."

"Yes."

"We've known each other for almost two weeks, now."

"Yes."

"And we haven't exactly gotten along the whole time."

"Yes."

"But when we do, it's kind of awesome."

"Yes."

"I - can you please stop agreeing with everything I say?"

"Yes. Wait, shit-"

Enjolras laughs, smiling at his rainbow socks, which he bought in Fort Bragg to annoy Javert. When he looks up, Grantaire is eyeing him cautiously, almost shyly. Enjolras suspects it's a reflection of his own expression. "As I was saying, R, I value your company deeply. You have an incisive mind, you're incredibly generous and kind to your siblings, and you've got an amazing sense of humor. I enjoy both arguing and not arguing with you, because you pick apart the holes in my ideas and have incredible insight, and, well, I was wondering..." He bites his lip, his gaze flickering above R's head. R's gaze follows his own.

There's a long pause. "Enjolras," Grantaire says slowly, "why is mistletoe taped to every square inch of the ceiling?"

Maybe that was overkill. "I didn't want to take any chances. If you would be interested..."

"You seriously mistletoed the entire basement as an excuse to kiss me." Grantaire laughs, sounding slightly hysterical. "Dude, I knew you were upstanding, but I didn't know you were a sappy romantic."

"Uh-"

"And that's a yes, by the way."

"Oh. Uh, great." Enjolras is rooted to the spot - but they're six feet apart, this isn't going to work, so he awkwardly walks over to Grantaire and tentatively presses their lips together.

Ah, so that's a kiss.

When he draws back, R is grinning at him. "Either you're the most chaste person I've ever met, or that was your first kiss."

Now he's definitely flushing. "Did I do it wrong?"

"Not at all, but - come on." R tangles their fingers together - okay, yes, that's, he's okay with that - and tugs him over to the couch. "Let me be the educator for once."

~

Pwnine: MY EYES

Pwnine: MY EYES

Marry me: u do have lovely eyes

Pwnine: ty marius but JESUS

Pwnine: DONT GO IN THE BASEMENT

Pwnine: DONT LET JAVERT GO IN THE BASEMENT

Pwnine: i mean hes prob already freaking out about us but just

Pwnine: DONT GO IN THE BASEMENT

Cos i said so: what's in the basement?

Pwnine: OUR BROTHERS, ON THE COUCH,

Pwnine: PRACTICING FOR THEIR AUDITIONS AS AFFECTIONATE OCTOPI

Pwnine: IM GOING TO WASH MY EYES OUT WITH BLEACH

Pwnine: OR ORANGE JUICE IDK

Marry me: bleach is basic, orange juice is acidic...?

Cos i said so: please dont use either

Cos i said so: also !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cos i said so: ABOUT FRICKING TIME

Marry me: that would explain why enj spent all morning papering the ceiling with mistletoe

Cos i said so: HE DIDNT

Marry me: he did.

~

_A sample of gifts exchanged, Christmas 2016:_

From Eponine to Enjolras: a list of all the conservative organizations nearby in need of opposition

From Gavroche to Eponine: a carefully washed, second-hand teddy bear

From Cosette to Gavroche: an introductory book to programming in Python

From Grantaire to Cosette: a painting of Felicia the Terrible

From Eponine to Cosette: a Balthazar tree-topper

From Marius to Gavroche: a high-quality winter coat (and no, it's not too expensive, Gavroche needs to be kept warm and anyway Marius's grandfather paid)

From Grantaire to Enjolras: a portrait of him in the style of "Liberty Leading the People"

From Eponine to Grantaire: a framed photo of him and Enjolras singing karaoke

From Marius to Cosette: two pounds of tapioca pearls

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback is always appreciated! :D


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